Multnomah County is pleased to announce the Earthquake Ready Burnside Bridge Project will receive $10 million in funding through Oregon Metro’s Regional Flexible Funding Allocation. On Thursday, July 31, the Metro Council approved nearly a quarter billion dollars for the 2028-30 regional flexible funding allocation cycle.
These funds come from the federal government and can be used on a variety of transportation projects. The $10 million will go toward improving access to transit, including new and reconstructed bus stops, pedestrian refuge islands, sidewalk reconstruction, bike lanes and upgrades for Americans with Disability Act (ADA) accessibility.
“We are encouraged and thankful for this vote of confidence from our regional partners,” Design Phase Project Manager Megan Neill said “This funding adds to the momentum of this project and gets us one step closer to building the first downtown Portland bridge that will be immediately operable after a major earthquake.”
Multnomah County is leading an effort to replace the current Burnside Bridge with one that can withstand a Cascadia Subduction Zone Earthquake. It’s one of the largest earthquake resilience projects in Oregon.
“Every dollar counts for this project because a new bridge will be the lifeline we need at the exact moment we need it. Multnomah County’s Earthquake Ready Burnside Bridge Project is more than a bridge – it’s an investment in the infrastructure our region will require to recover from the devastation we anticipate in the wake of a Cascadia-level earthquake,” Multnomah County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson said.
Leveraging Funding
The County thus far has been successful in securing multiple sources of funding in an effort to raise $895 million for the project. To date, the County and local partners have already committed to funding $300 million for the project, through the local vehicle registration fee. The County is actively pursuing various grants and other funding opportunities at the local, state and federal levels to fully fund the project.
In August 2023, the project was awarded $20 million in state funding through House Bill 5030. In the previous year, the project received a federal $5 million Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability & Equity (RAISE) Planning Grant. This marked the project’s first successful federal funding award.
The County is also actively pursuing federal grants from the recent Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. On July 31st, 2025 the Multnomah County Board of Commissioners approved the project’s Notice of Intent to apply for $447 million from the FY26 USDOT Bridge Investment Program Grant. The funding would go toward the project’s Construction Phase.
Next Steps
The County has secured more local funding than any other project in the region, which allows the project to continue through the Design Phase. Despite significant uncertainty at the federal level — affecting infrastructure projects across the country — Multnomah County will continue to push ahead with this project. Design and other engineering work remains ongoing, and the County is committed to building a bridge that can withstand a major earthquake.
Architects, engineers, planners, lighting specialists, contractors and agency partners will be working to finalize the new bridge design over the next few years, including looking at ways to construct the new bridge in the most efficient and cost-conscious way possible.